Brussels, 07/02/2008 (Agence Europe) - As part of the European Commission's integrated policy to boost entrepreneurship and company growth in Europe, EU Industry Commissioner Günter Verheugen launched Enterprise Europe Network, a new and powerful European support network for enterprises, at an event also attended by Janez Potoènik, Commissioner for Science and Research, Slovenian Minister of the Economy Andrej Vizjak, President of the Committee of Regions Luc Van den Brande, and President of the Group of Employers of the European Economic and Social Committee Henri Malosse.
Enterprise Europe Network combines the strengths of the previous Euro Info Centre with the Innovation Relay Centre networks. With the new network, business receives 'Business Support on Your Doorstep', as the slogan suggests. The 'No wrong door' principle will apply for the whole network and for each network partner. All SMEs will receive information and a personalised service tailored to their needs, making best use of modern technologies and from every organisation in the new network (for an initial description of the initiative by European Commission Special Envoy for SMEs, Francoise Le Bail, see EUROPE 9533).
The Enterprise Europe Network has three main aims: 1) Assisting companies in going international. The Commission says that an estimated one million European SMEs could be involved in cross-border trade and investment. The Enterprise Europe Network will help develop exchanges between enterprises, trigger new ideas, nurture potential partnerships and stimulate firms to develop beyond their initial horizons. One-to-one match-making meetings will be organized to help identify trustworthy partners. Building technology partnerships between SMEs based on the transfer of innovation is another way to 'go international' and generate return on investments in research. The network is assisting SMEs to identify partners and make the contractual arrangements with them; 2) Innovation, new products and grasping opportunities in the single market. Helping small businesses with technical issues such as intellectual property rights, standards and EU legislation, as it can be difficult for companies to remain abreast of changes in EU related opportunities. The Enterprise Europe Network will encourage SMEs to become more innovative as sharing the results of research can trigger new ideas/opportunities. To this end, collaboration with clusters bundling different innovation related activities will be improved; 3) Ensuring access to EU funding. The Enterprise Europe Network aims to overcome the knowledge gap regarding different sources of EU financing and ensure companies are aware of the possibilities available. SMEs will in particular be encouraged to participate in research programmes; 4) Providing feedback to the Commission. The Enterprise Europe Network will act as a two-way street between entrepreneurs and the Commission, relaying views in both directions to ensure that the policies and initiatives the Commission prepares will be helpful for SMEs and do not mean additional administrative burden. For further information, see http: //http://www.enterprise-europe-network.ec.europa.eu/index_en.htm (E.H.)